If it were any consolation to Vitali Klitschko, he had the hottest trainer in boxing working his corner for last night’s heavyweight fight against Kirk Johnson in the Garden.

Freddie Roach is all but a lock for the Boxing Writers’ Trainer of the Year Award after compiling a string of successes in 2003 that are the envy of his profession.

It began when he prepared the difficult-to-deal-with Mike Tyson for his first-round knock out of Clifford Etienne last February in Memphis and continued with lightweight Juan Lazcano earning a technical knockout of Steve Johnston this September in Las Vegas. Roach also trained James Toney for his two big wins: a 12-round decision over Vassiliy Jirov for the IBF cruiserweight title in April and a ninth-round knockout over Evander Holyfield in October.

Two other Roach fighters, Bernard Dunne, a featherweight, and Brian Viloria, a flyweight, combined for an 11-0 record in 2003, but the highlight may have been featherweight Manny Pacquiao’s stunning 11th-round TKO of Antonio Barrera last November in San Antonio.

“I have good fighters,” Roach said in explaining his success. “We get along well. Seems like I can bring out something in them. I get inside their head a little bit.”

Roach, who compiled a 39-13-0 record while fighting as a featherweight from 1978-86, credits his former trainer, the legendary Eddie Futch, for teaching him his craft.

“Eddie taught me how to bring a fighter to a fight the right way,” Roach said. “I give Eddie a lot of credit because he was my mentor. The main thing is my fighters have a lot of trust in me. When I tell them to do something, they try it. Fighters aren’t always trainable. So I appreciate that they trust me, and they listen. James Toney doesn’t listen to too many people. But he listens to me.”

Last night’s bout was his first with Vitali Klitschko though he has worked with Wladimir Klitschko for several months. Wladimir has a fight on Dec. 20, then Roach will reunite with Toney, who faces heavyweight Jammel McLine on Feb. 7 at a site to be determined.

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Last night’s boxing card was the first at the Garden since Bernard Hopkins defeated Felix Trinidad for the undisputed middleweight championship on Sept. 15, 2001.

The drought was due to conflicts with other events, competition from the Las Vegas casinos, and near misses on potential Garden fights like Roy Jones versus Holyfield, and a rematch between Vitali Klitschko and Lennox Lewis. Both fights never happened.

“We have basketball all the time and we have concerts all the times, so there is always a special feeling when a fight comes around,” said Kevin Wynne, head of Garden boxing.

“We’re always out there looking for things. Hopefully, there will be a good level of activity next year and we’ll have some dates available.”

If a Jones-Tyson fight looks feasible, look for the Garden to push to host that event. Wynne inquired about a potential Shane Mosley-Ricardo Mayorga matchup, but on March 13 the Garden is booked for the Big East Tournament.

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The boxing caravan heads this Saturday to Atlantic City, where promoter Don King has put together an impressive pay-per-view show at Boardwalk Hall.

Pick your own main event. Bernard Hopkins defends his numerous middleweight titles against William Joppy; Ricardo Mayorga and Cory Spinks (Leon’s son) will settle the undisputed welterweight championship; former heavyweight champions Hasim Rahman and John Ruiz, will fight for the top ranking in the WBA; while junior welterweight champ Zab Judah of Brooklyn, super welterweight champ Alejandro Garcia and junior flyweight champ Victor Burgos defend their titles.